Aligning for Health is a membership association which, with the support of our members and Advisory Board, brings a team of federal and state experts to address the issues that challenge the common purpose of our members – the need for integrated and coordinated programs to better improve health outcomes for Americans.
Social Determinants of Health
Many have posited that the main contributor to our relatively poor health outcomes is the fact that clinical needs account for only 10-20 percent of health but we spend 80 percent of our health care dollars on clinical interventions. The other 80-90 percent of our health status is related to genetics and so-called social determinants of health, which are health-related behaviors, and socioeconomic and environmental factors.
Ongoing Efforts
Many in the healthcare community are starting to take notice of the importance of social determinants, and are working to better understand and address the impact of non-clinical factors on health, including through the Medicaid program.